Montenegro family reunification and spouse residence permit

The sponsor can be a Montenegrin citizen, a foreigner with permanent residence or a foreigner with temporary residence in Montenegro. Close family members are spouses, their minor children born in or out of marriage, stepchildren and adopted children up to 18, and the parents or adoptive parents of minor children. A same-sex life partner of the sponsor has the same right. Other relatives may be treated as close family where special personal or humanitarian reasons exist.

There are two exclusions: in a polygamous marriage only one spouse can be reunited, and family members of a foreigner holding a seasonal employment permit cannot obtain this permit at all.

The family member shows the general residence conditions: means of subsistence, accommodation, health insurance, a passport valid three months beyond the permit and a clean criminal record in Montenegro and the country of origin (not required under 16). The proof of the request is the marriage or birth certificate, or other evidence of the family tie, with a certified translation. Spouses and partners of Montenegrin citizens do not have to prove means of subsistence.

For a visa D for family reunification the mission asks for proof of the close family tie and a guarantee letter from the sponsor, or other proof that the sponsor will cover accommodation, living costs and departure.

Visa-required family members apply for a visa D for family reunification at a Montenegrin mission or VFS centre. After arrival, the application for the temporary residence permit is filed in person at the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the place of residence, with biometrics taken from everyone over 12. The Ministry asks the National Security Agency and the police for an opinion and decides within 40 days of a complete application.

Apply for extension 60 to 30 days before expiry. The permit can continue on its own if the Montenegrin citizen or permanent-resident sponsor dies, if a marriage or partnership that lasted at least three years in Montenegro ends, or if the family member is a victim of domestic violence, regardless of how long the marriage lasted. A child who reaches adulthood keeps the permit after three continuous years of family reunification residence.

A family reunification permit does not lapse after a longer absence if there were particularly justified humanitarian reasons, such as serious illness, reported in advance to the police.

The permit is refused, or later ended, if the marriage or partnership was concluded only to obtain entry or residence. Signs the Ministry looks at include not living together, not knowing each other before the marriage, not speaking a common language, false personal data, payment for the marriage outside a dowry custom and earlier marriages of convenience. A refusal can be appealed to the Ministry within eight days.

A family member of a Montenegrin citizen or of a permanent resident may work without a temporary residence and work permit and has free access to the labour market. A family member of a foreigner who holds temporary residence for work may start working one year after obtaining their own family reunification permit.